Chapter 4 - Invoices That Led Nowhere
Arthur Davis locked the small accounting conference room and spread the documents across the table. He looked older without the public smile he wore downstairs.
“Northstar Guest Solutions,” Elena read from an invoice. “Three hundred and eighty thousand dollars for a security upgrade.”
“We never received the equipment,” Davis said. “I asked for delivery records. Victoria said the vendor had changed its schedule.”
“I noticed irregularities last winter. I was told the board had approved the vendors.”
“Then they weren't approvals. They were excuses.”
Davis flinched, but he didn't argue. He opened a locked drawer and produced a report he had never sent to the board. It showed payments that had been split into smaller amounts to avoid internal review. Some were marked as emergency maintenance. Others were labeled as charitable transfers.
Elena found Harbor House on the last page. The hotel had promised the shelter nearly a million dollars from two fundraising seasons. The records showed the money had been transferred to an account controlled by a company with no connection to the shelter.
Davis tapped the screen. “The approvals came through the office of Paul Mercer, our chief financial officer. But Victoria authorized the vendor changes.”
“Then we start with Mercer.”
Davis rubbed his forehead. “There is one more thing. Your father asked me to keep a separate copy of the accounts. He thought someone was using the hotel to hide debts. Before I could finish checking, he became ill.”
“Let her in,” she said. “Let's see how she explains a bill for equipment that doesn't exist.”
May you like
Davis unlocked the door. Victoria entered with two lawyers and a security supervisor. Her smile was perfect, but her eyes went straight to the documents.
“What a surprise,” she said. “The new owner has been here less than an hour, and already she's stealing confidential records.”
